Brazilian Butt Lift: Stories

Hello,

I've been interested in a BBL and researching for a board certified plastic surgeon for the past 2 years. Been to 3 consults, however, the surgeons' portfolios did not impress me UNTIL I saw Dr. Salama's work. I absolutely love the way he is able to shape a woman's body into such a sexy, feminine silhouette with just the right amount of curves in the buttock...which is why I choose him.

I'm 2.5 weeks away and pretty excited. I've found it extremely helpful reading all the other posts from previous patients. I figured I will share my story as well so future patients can get an idea from my experience.

Currently: 5'5, 190 lbs. Will post before pics tomorrow.

COSTS SO FAR:

Surgery = $6899.00 (BBL w/Lipo of abdomen, flanks, back & arms)
Hotel = $2000.00 (8 nights @ Marenas Resort, ocean front 700 sq ft suite)
Flight = $500.00
Labwork = $405 (Office visit $105, Lab work $255, PCP recommended chest x-ray $50)


MEDICATIONS/VITAMINS RECOMMENDED BY DOC = $ 100.00 Total
Clindamycin (Anti-Biotic)
Percocet (Pain Killer)
Phenergan (Nausea)
Colace (Stool Softner)
Vitamin C (1000mg)
Iron (300mg)

Make Me Heal = $175 total
SinEcch
Boiron Arnica Tablets
MMH Pre & Post Op Vitamins
Boiron Arnica Montana Gel (2)
Kelo-cote Scar Reduction Gel

Wal-Mart
Urinal - $6.95
Gloves - $4.00
Gauges – $5.00
Tape - $2.00
Bed Underpads –$7.95
Dial – $2.00
Wipes – $ 3.00
Suction hooks - $4.00

Additional Costs:
Food - $200
Extra massages - $400.00


Clothing:
Maxi dresses
Robe
Sweats
T-shirts
Sports Bra
Tight tanks/waist clincher
Compression socks

Just uploaded before pics. Will post better ones the day of surgery. :)

EXACTLY 2 weeks away!! All my friends and family are calling/texting me to begin the countdown til the big day! Lol

Oh, and beginning my Make Me Heal Pre-Op vitamins today :)

I've gotten a few email from some of the ladies in regards to the list of supplies, I hope this helps :)

The Make Me Heal list are optional stuff I choose to purchase as recommended by previous patients. The pre-op (14days before) and post-op (up to 30 days after) pills help prepare/provide your cells with the nutrients it needs for faster recovery. The arnica pills & pellets are to help with swelling and inflammation. I spoke to one of the girls at the office and they are now providing this (I ordered these prior to knowing this)....however, I am going to start taking these 4 days before surgery to prepare my body (I purchased both bc I wanted to take them 4 day prior to surgery and as many days as possible after surgery due to the fact that I want to have the minimal amt of swelling as possible...for work). The gel is also to help with the swelling and inflammation along with the pain (I will be applying these after showers and when I get my massages). The scar cream is to lighten and lessen the scars from the stitches. I've had lipo of the love handles before and want as little scarring as possible.

Wal-mart list, the urinal is so that I can stand up and pee after surgery without getting pee everywhere on me. The garment is hard to take off and put on and you will get an urge to pee every 2-3 hours. The suction hooks are to hold the drainage tubes in the shower bc I dont want them dangling on the floor or have to hold them when I shower. The underpads are for in case there are any leakage when I lay down, I won't get fluid all over the hotel sheets/mattress.

I purchased 2 tanks from target that tightens the tummy (in the bra/underwear dept) and 1 waist clincher with the hooks going from top to bottom from walmart (bra/underwear dept). I bought the waist clincher in case the garments Dr.Salama gives us becomes tight on the butt and lose on the stomach (due to the lipo) and I want additional support (tightness), so that's why I will be wearing the tight tank under the garment and the waist clincher on the outside (above the garment).

Alrightyyyyy....one hour before surgery!!! So excited and praying for a safe surgery!

Before measurements: 36 (38 F) chest, 37 waist, 46 hips, 14 arms

Went in at 130 got to hotrl at 815. Ate at 816, took pain killer at 830. It is now midnight and just took another one. About to get up and walk and eat for 10 mins once med takes effect. Woke up shaking from surgery all i could do was pray at that point. Was so cold and in pain. When i got to hotel had to shut ac off it was on 65! Face is swollen. Pain level was at a 8-9 after surgery and at hotel. Now about a 7....and i can tolerate pain but let me tell u, wont do a round 2 even if i have too lol. Butt is sooooo sore. Everything hurts. Even when i joke w/ my friend and laugh.... It hurts butt i cant hel it... I laugh at everything. Told her i was doing right cheek left cheek, she just cant see it! Lol. Will update pics in the middle of the day today ladies....this update gave me enough time to let the med kick in lol.

Hello again, just came back from having Dr.Salama take a look at me. Everything looks good. Butt is EXTREMELY sore, and so are arms. My first massage will be tmrw. Peeing almost every 4 hours. Cant wait til tmrw when garment comes off for massage and I get to see my body :). Keeping the updates short for now ladies...will go into more details later when I get more energy. Posting a few pics.

Yesterday was day 2 after surgery. Was taking pain killer every 3 hours bc it wore off around 2-2.5 hours. Took a shower and had my first massage. PAINFUL PAINFUL PAINFUL!!! My skin is all bruised up and it felt like someone just skinned me alive. I felt all the liquid moving as she was massaging me. Felt better after the massage and butt was not in as much pain oddly. Now I only take the pain killer once every 4-6 hours. Butt is hard as a rock, don't know how I would even attempt to take a dump like this. Will take laxative tmrw and see if I get a bowel movement. Neck hurts so rubbed some Arnica gel on it and pain went away. Added a few pics but these pics do no justice as to how my waist/hip and body really looks.

Yesterday was day 3 after surgery. Pain was a little better. Took a shower and felt dizzy. Most of the bruising in the abdomen area were gone.

Today was day 4. Got my 2nd massage from Eileen (sweetheart). It was extremely painful but not as bad as the 1st one. Felt so much better after. Was feeling really good so went to the office to pick up arm garments and prescription for more pain killers. Waited at the office for Larry for a little over an hour, so thankful Neiomi was nice enough to let me lay down ....but during that wait, neck became stiff and sore. Larry picked me up along with another patient and took us to fill our prescription. He left us there for what we thought would be 20-30 mins max. I called him and he said he would be 20 mins most....25 mins later i called again to see where he was, he said he was stuck at the airport. At this point my butt became stiff and sore all over again and I didnt feel so great because the store was cold and Im sure that shivering tensed my skin up. So, I called a taxi and was taken back to the hotel. Larry is a sweet man, and poor guy has so many people to transport, but it can become a great inconvenience to have to continue to wait on the driver once you've had your surgery. Honestly, I would hope that they get an additional driver and perhaps another more accommodating vehicle to transport patients. Laying in that car can be quite uncomfortable since you have to support your body weight and when there are 2 patients in the back, it is painful bc we keep bumping into each other!!! Ok, so I finally gave in and took 3 colace today...i don't feel constipated but everyone keeps talking about how much better you feel, so I will let you know how it goes. Oh, LOVING my body more and more everyday. Havent seen my stomach this flat since high school! lol

Yesterday was 5 days post op.

Went to the beach and laid under a tiki hut for about an hour....ordered me a non-alcoholic pina colada :)
.
After taking the 3 colace I still didnt have a bowel movement so I took 2 laxatives (Ducolex 6-12 hours relief) at 10am. At around 3, I felt my stomach moved a little so went to the restroom and was able to do a little number 2. It was hard and def uncomfortable sitting on that toilet bc no matter how I sat, some part of the fat injected area was being sat on. My lipo'd arms were sore bc I spent the majority of the time trying to hold myself off the toilet. Came out of the shower and laid down for an hour then started getting chills...30 mins later stomach started bubbling, Then I knew why I was having the chills, the laxative. Went to the restroom and undressed myself in about 15 seconds....didnt even knew this was possible lol. Felt a lil more relieved.

Butt is still hard and swollen. Drains are not filling up nearly as much. Neck is still in pain from sleeping on stomach. Board and foam is not that bad, you just feel a little more stiff when laying down so I place an extra pillow under my tummy. Back of arms are sore from me using them so much. Lipo'd areas don't hurt much, yeah you feel pain when it is being touched but it is tolerable. Ummm....I think that is it so far. If I left anything out, feel free to ask me :)

Yesterday was exactly 1 week post surgery and my final day there. Woke up a little more tired than normal.

Went to the office to get my final massage from Eileen. It was not as painful as the 1st and fluid did fill up an entire drain. Right after, Naiomi removed my drains. I was anticipating them to be painful but I did not feel them at all.
Left to catch my flight. Sat for 1.5 hours on the boppy pillow then got up and stood for 30 mins then sat for another hour. Butt was extremely sore after the flight. Got home...felt SO good to be laying in MY bed!!!! Woke up and decided to take a shower...it was amazing, no more drains! However, the size of the hole from the drain in the front was pretty big...caught me off guard a little. I SWEAR, I HAVE SOOOOO MUCH NECK PAIN FROM SLEEPING ON MY STOMACH, IT IS GOING TO BE THE END OF ME AND MY NEW BUTT! LOL. I actually think my neck pain is worse than my butt pain at this point...im getting bad migraines and can hear the blood flowing through my vessel anytime I lay my head down. It got so bad that after I took my shower and waited for my garment to dry, I slept on my back with a pillow propping my back, head, legs and boppy pillow under my butt for 30 mins. Oh my, what a difference it made. Got up, neck didnt hurt as bad and butt didnt hurt either....im sure i killed a handful of fat cells in my buttocks...but at this point, i will take a smaller butt so my neck can stop mghurting. Im sure im going to have to go get my neck checked out bc the pain level is crazy, along w/the migraine and pressure i am getting on one side...makes me want to cry, and i dont cry ;(. Other than that, body is looking good, loving results, and bruising is almost all gone.

It is now 16 days post op. I feel great. Butt is still firm for the most part but top part is softening up. Constant pain in butt went away after day 9..still walking a little slow. 99% of bruise is gone. I DO SEE A DIFFERENCE IN MY ARMS, IT IS DEFINITELY SMALLER. Lipo'd areas are still tender to touch. I LOVE MY BODY...and it keeps getting better and better the more I look at it. I asked for a natural full butt and I love the way it looks so far, even if it is to go down a little more, I absolutely love the shape and what Dr.Salama has done for my body.
A lot of ladies are wondering how many CC's I got, I honestly have no idea but I have emailed Ruben and he will get the information for me on Wednesday....as soon as I find out I will let you ladies know. I didn't ask Dr.Salama for any amount of CC's bc he stated that the amount of CC don't really matter bc it all depends on your skin elasticity and how much your butt can take in. With that being said, I asked that he gave me a round butt with projection on the top and bottom that looks natural and not wide, nothing too big or huge. In all honesty, I dont think being off 2 weeks from work is enough ladies...so if you are able to, take a little more time off. I am able to go grocery shopping, shopping and eat out but I am definitely not at 100% recovery yet.
Added a few new pics....will let you know how many CC's as soon as Ruben lets me know.

Received an email from Ruben.... I got 1100 CCs per cheek ;). 20% of butt is soft and feels normal now...other 80% is still stiff but softening up.

Sorry it's been a while since I've been on here but I've been so occupied w/work I haven't had a chance to update.

At 5 weeks post op, I decided to rub some Arnica gel on my butt so see if it would help with the swelling. I had no problems until day 3 where I developed redness, tenderness, a warming sensation and itching. I went to another plastic surgeon to have it looked at and she performed a butt biopsy immediately to make sure it was not any puss and it was not an infection. I knew it wasnt an infection because I had no fever and the symptoms occurred only after I had applied the Arnica gel there. I took zyrtec and applied prescription cortisone to the area and was okay after a week. Attached a pic so you can see.

I am now at week 12. I absolutely love my body and what Dr.Salama has done. The only problem I have right now is that 1/2 of my left cheek is still hard and 1/3 of my right cheek is hard. When I sit for 20 minutes of more, my butt would conform to a flatten shape where I sat on it. But once I am off my butt and laying down, it goes back to its full shape. Im hoping that it is just scar tissue and not fat necrosis but I will give it a few more months and see. Lipo'd areas are still a little hard. Swelling of the pubic area finally went down at about 8 weeks. Attached a few pics.

TO ANY VETERAN BBL LADIES READING THIS....HOW LONG (many weeks) DID IT TAKE FOR YOUR ENTIRE BUTT TO SOFTEN BACK TO NORMAL?????

I've been using a vibrating massager on the hard parts of my butt every other day for 5 mins on each cheek and it is softening up. The big hard spots are breaking down into little round lumps which you press into the skin. From outside, you cant tell that there are lumps. I prob have fat necrosis or scar tissue, but I will give in another 2 months and continue using the vibrating massager before I contact Dr.Salama.

Even though my butt is not completely healed and I am having to deal with these hard parts, I am still very happy with my result. My overall contour is still beautiful and my butt looks nice, full and round in jeans and dresses. Please be realistic with your goals ladies and prepared for any complications/imperfections that may arise. My left cheek is slightyly bigger than my right and my right has a little dent from where the fat didnt take, I assume. However, I am still happy and pleased. All Im praying for right now is for my buttocks to be completely soft.

And yes, it does jiggle nicely when I want it to. I can make it bounce beautifully, up/down & side/side especially on all 4s ;)))
It claps and right cheek left cheek as well :P Will post more pics next week once I hit the 4 months mark.